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Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought
.]] A Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought of the Custodian Guard is a revered relic of the Imperium of Man's golden age. Each houses a fallen hero of the Adeptus Custodes, a warrior broken in body but not in mind who has opted to fight to his last breath. Interred within the cold, dark confines of a cybernetic life-support sarcophagus, the Custodian becomes a god of war, able to stride unharmed through hails of fire and crush the Master of Mankind's foes with their hydraulic might. Articulated in the manner of a human warrior, the Contemptor fights with a deceptive dexterity for its size -- onward it pushes, its heavy weapon system laying down a swathe of deadly fire. At close quarters, sweeps of its Dreadnought-sized Power Fist crush infantry to paste and tear their war engines apart to leave naught but wreckage behind. Role , the first Custodian to be interred within a Dreadnought, fighting against Heretic Astartes of the Sons of Horus during the Horus Heresy.]] Bellowing a Vox-amplified war cry, the Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought storms into the enemy with merciless fury. Heavy fire spits from its gun arm -- either blasts of melta energy that reduce tanks to molten ruin or screaming hails of shells from the spinning barrels of its Kheres Pattern Assault Cannon. The Dreadnought's other arm ends in a fist like a wrecking ball, a gilded gauntlet that can tear the turret from a battle tank or splinter every bone in a body with a single punch. Wielding these weapons with a matchless skill characteristic of the Adeptus Custodes, the Contemptor blazes a trail of death and destruction through its enemies, tearing the heart from those who would stand against the Emperor and sending the terrified survivors fleeing in terror. Each Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought is an ancient war engine, a relic that incorporates wonders of technology that the Imperium can no longer replicate. Its auramite armour plates are expertly crafted and maintained. Its limbs are articulated by fibre-bundles and servo-motors that afford it immense strength. Its weapons are perfectly calibrated, while its hull is sheathed in the crackling energies of an atomantic shield that can dispel laser blasts and artillery shells amidst bright flares of energy. Auto-repair protocols allow the Dreadnought to shrug off crippling battle damage, while motive shrines and auto-sanctified backup systems stand ready to take the strain should the Contemptor undergo serious combat trauma. Yet for all this arcane technology, the most important component of the Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought is the living warrior interred in the sarcophagus at its heart. .]] Though the physiology of the Custodians is remarkably durable, still there are wounds so severe that even they cannot survive them. When faced with certain death, a Custodian may choose to be preserved within a Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought so that he can continue to fight for the Emperor. There should be no mistaking that this is the act of a martyr, for life within a Dreadnought sarcophagus -- even one as advanced as the Venerable Contemptor -- is a twilight existence at best. The pilot is shorn of all unnecessary flesh, rendered down to little more than a sack of organs and brain matter sustained within an armaglass amniotic tank. They are then permanently fused with the life-support systems of the Dreadnought. Its powerful limbs become theirs to operate. Its complex sensoria become their eyes and ears, its Vox emitter their mouth. In return, they face an eternity cut off from the outside world, bound to mechanical systems that can never truly replicate the feel of sunlight upon their skin, or the satisfying crunch of their blade through an enemy's flesh. Despite this, there are tales of unharmed Custodians volunteering to pilot Contemptors whose previous occupants were slain in battle. Those soon to depart as Eyes of the Emperor, those who feel they have dishonoured themselves, even warriors who simply will not turn aside from what they perceive as their duty; all, it is said, have given their flesh willingly so that the Contemptor Dreadnoughts of the Custodes continue to stride to war. Notable Venerable Contemptor Dreadnoughts *'Sagittaras (Sagittarus Malacque)' - Sagittarus was one of the first thirty Custodians created by the hand of the Emperor of Mankind and served alongside his liege as His personal Honour Guard during the Unification Wars. Choleric and wild, he was the first Custodian to be wounded unto death, and interred within the sarcophagus of the Contemptor Pattern Dreadnought as a part of the Legio Custodes Moritoi caste. It is not known if Sagittaras is still serving with the Adeptus Custodes in the 41st Millennium. Shield-Captain before being interred within a Contemptor Dreadnought sarcophagus]] *'Hasturius Calaxor' - A notable Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought who served within the ranks of the Adeptus Custodes for millennia. When he was still living, Hasturius Calaxor originally served in the ancient Legio Custodes, and came to prominence at the defence of the Imperial Palace during the Battle of Terra. He held the Enlightener's Stair single-handedly against the turncoat soldiers of the 9th Terran Wardens. It was he who also rallied the Gospodor Heavy Infantry with his inspiring examples of bravery, and led them to retake the Dome of the Architects from Dortha Kol's Sons of Horus Legionaries, drive Kol's warriors to destruction and fell the Traitor ''Warhound'' Titan Warp Jackal as well. These heroics saw Calaxor promoted to the rank of Shield-Captain, after which he led three further highly successful counteroffensives before the siege's end. He went on to earn himself many more names in the centuries that followed. After long years of faithful service, he finally fell in battle on the Dead World of Palathrix, his sheer force of will keeping him alive long enough to be interred within a Dreadnought sarcophagus. He became Venerable Ancient Calaxor, and assumed a new role within the Ten Thousand as a living war engine and strategic advisor. *'Darian' - A notable Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought who served with the Fury of Terra Shield Host, which was led personally by Captain-General Trajann Valoris and fought against the Heretic Astartes assault on the Imperial world of Elysia following the formation of the Great Rift. *'Eratorius' - Eratorius was a notable Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought who served with the Fury of Terra Shield Host, Second Shield Company (Vanguard Detachment), which was led by Shield-Captain Steale, and fought against the Heretic Astartes assault on the world of Elysia following the formation of the Great Rift. *'Euramedes' - A notable Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought who often served with the Gilded Talons Shield Company commanded by Shield-Captain Archturus Paliades following the formation of the Great Rift. *'Talorian' - A notable Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought who often served with the Gilded Talons Shield Company commanded by Shield-Captain Archturus Paliades following the formation of the Great Rift. *'Uriaxes' - A notable Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought who fell atop the walls of the Emperor's Imperial Palace during the War of the Beast in the mid-32nd Millennium. Though he was broken in body, he still wished to continue to fight for the Master of Mankind. He has continued to fight on through the millennia, during several notable events in Imperial history. He fought against the Dark Mechanicus on Ghosaris during the Moirae Schism as well as against the Blood Cults of Tsydon. Uriaxes still actively serves, fighting in various campaigns throughout the galaxy following the formation of the Great Rift, in an attempt to repay the debt he owes the Master of Mankind. Wargear *'Combi-Bolter' *'Multi-Melta' *'Dreadnought Close Combat Weapon' Optional Wargear A Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought can replace its Multi-Melta with the following: *'Kheres Pattern Assault Cannon' Sources *''Codex: Adeptus Custodes'' (8th Edition), pp. 42, 52-53, 66 *[https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Venerable-Contemptor-Dreadnought Games Workshop Online Store - Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought] Gallery File:Custodian_Ven_Contemptor_Dred_3.jpg|A Custodian Venerable Contemptor Dreadnought blasts the enemy with the super-heated energies of its Multi-Melta. Category:V Category:Adeptus Custodes Category:Imperial Technology Category:Imperial Walkers Category:Vehicles Category:Walkers